Anime studio admits AI use

WIT Studio said generative artificial intelligence was used in part of the opening for *Ascendance of a Bookworm: Adopted Daughter of an Archduke* and said the affected cuts will be redrawn. (oricon.co.jp) The studio said it investigated the production process after the April 4, 2026 premiere and confirmed that generative artificial intelligence was used to create source material for background art in some cuts of episode 1’s opening. WIT Studio said the revised opening would begin airing with episode 2. (oricon.co.jp) The production committee said episode 1 would also be updated on broadcast and streaming services after episode 2 airs, and said release dates for the Blu-ray Disc box and digital versatile disc editions could change if the replacement work affects the schedule. The anime’s official accounts also said the creditless opening video previously posted on YouTube and X had been taken down. (oricon.co.jp) Generative artificial intelligence image tools make pictures from text prompts or by remixing existing images, and anime studios have been testing where those tools fit into a pipeline built around hand-drawn layouts, painted backgrounds, and compositing. WIT Studio said that, as a rule, it does not allow generative artificial intelligence in the image production of its works, including this series. (oricon.co.jp) That gap between policy and practice is what turned a few seconds of opening footage into a larger production story. WIT Studio said the problem came from failures in production management and inspection, not from its art director or background art company, Nam Hai Art. (oricon.co.jp) The series itself is a high-profile return for the franchise. Crunchyroll reported in January that season 4 would premiere on April 4, 2026 and run for two consecutive cours, the Japanese television term for a roughly three-month broadcast block. (crunchyroll.com) The anime adapts Miya Kazuki’s light novel series about a book-loving girl reborn into a world where books are scarce, and the new season follows Rozemyne after earlier television seasons produced before WIT Studio took over. Reports on the backlash said viewers began flagging odd-looking background details in the opening within days of the premiere. (crunchyroll.com) (automaton-media.com) WIT Studio has used generative artificial intelligence publicly before, but in a separate context. In 2023, it released the short experimental project *The Dog & The Boy*, which the studio described at the time as a technical test rather than part of its regular series production. (oricon.co.jp) The immediate next step is straightforward: the opening gets replaced, episode 1 gets updated, and WIT Studio says it is rewriting its production guidelines to prevent a repeat. (oricon.co.jp)